WPF or Windows Presentation Foundation is a new graphical display framework for Windows. This new system is designed to be used by .NET applications and allows the creation of dynamic, interactive graphical user interfaces. One of the most important features of WPF is the integration of DirectX. DirectX provides WPF with the ability to take advantage of the hardware acceleration on today’s graphics cards (GPUs). This allows the graphics load on the CPU to be greatly reduced, while at the same time, expanding the capabilities of the graphical display.

What WPF is and What XAML is

WPF provides a collection of controls such as buttons and grids, which are written in the Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML). XAML is an XML-based markup language created by Microsoft to separate the graphical and interactive elements of application from the main operations in the application, which are written in C# or Visual Basic. The beauty of WPF is how it is able to take advantage of the robustness of C# or Visual Basic, while at the same time using a simple XAML file to create the interface for the application.

The typical way that WPF creates and displays content goes like this:

1. XAML describes how the controls, images, video, and other assets are shown.
2. C# gives these assets their functionality.
3. The compiler then puts the XAML UI and functionality together into an executable (EXE) file for a Windows application or a XAML browser application (XBAP) executable for online applications.
4. The browser or Windows then displays the application.